Scotland's shipyards will only be safe if there is a No vote, warns former defence secretary

The future of Scotland’s shipyards can only be secured by a No vote in the
independence referendum, a former defence secretary has warned.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Finance Secretary John Swinney arrive at BAE Systems Scotstoun shipyard, in Glasgow, to meet directors and union officials following the defence giant's announcement that 1,775 jobs are to go across the UK. Photo: PA

Lord Reid of Cardowan said it was a “matter of fact”, and not a matter of political opinion, that Royal Navy warships would not be built north of the border in the event of the break-up of the UK.

His comments follow last week’s announcement by BAE Systems that 1,775 shipbuilding jobs are to go over the next three years.

Shipbuilding will end at Portsmouth next year, and around 800 jobs will be lost at the Govan and Scotstoun yards in Glasgow, and Rosyth in Fife.

However, the Clyde yards have been earmarked for a lucrative contract to build Type 26 frigates, which will be confirmed after the referendum.

Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, and Alistair Carmichael, the Scottish Secretary, have already made clear that the order will not go ahead on Clydeside if there is a Yes vote, as no complex warship has been built outside the UK since the Second World War.

Lord Reid, a former Labour defence secretary, said: “The wider lesson from the last few days is that the only way to secure the future of Scotland's shipyards is to remain in the UK. This is not a matter of political opinion, it is a matter of fact.

"It is a fact that since the Second World War no UK Government of any political stripe has ever commissioned the building of a warship in a foreign country.

Writing in the Sunday Express, he added: “It is a fact that for security, as well as economic and political, reasons we build these ships here at home in the UK."

Nicola Sturgeon, the Deputy First Minister, has dismissed suggestions that a "Yes" vote would put future warship orders in doubt, claiming that the Clyde would be the best, and the only place, to build the ships.

She said: "The current UK government has just agreed with BAE Systems that Portsmouth will cease building ships in 2014, and that Glasgow is 'the most effective location for the manufacture of the future Type 26 ships'. That will remain true, whether there is a 'Yes' next year or not."

However, General Sir Nicholas Houghton, Chief of the Defence Staff, said on the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme that there “may have to be some reconsideration” of the plan to end shipbuilding at Portsmouth if there is a Yes vote.

Ian Davidson, the Glasgow Labour MP, also pointed out that Portsmouth would not be closed next year until after the referendum, and the order could still be switched to the Hampshire port.

Meanwhile, Mr Carmichael called on Ms Sturgeon to "admit she is wrong" on the assertion that an independent Scotland could still build the UK’s warships, adding: “Nicola Sturgeon is looking pretty isolated on this.

"Is she really saying that everyone else is wrong and she is right? Is she telling us that the people who build the warships and the people who place the contracts know less about this than she does?"

"The future of the Clyde yards is sustainable as part of a large and successful United Kingdom. Brilliant workers and the best complex warships in the world, it is a great combination and we should not break it."